1) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a door opening/closing apparatus, and in particular to a door opening/closing apparatus for a vehicle.
2) Description of the Related Art
Some vehicles have a door opening/closing apparatus that operates a sliding door to automatically open/close an opening formed on a side of a vehicle. Some other vehicles have a door opening/closing apparatus that opens/closes an opening formed on a rear of a vehicle. Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 2001-10346 discloses a conventional art.
Conventionally, one actuator is provided for each door opening/closing apparatus. Therefore, if the vehicle has a number of doors, then a number of actuators are required and the cost of the vehicle disadvantageously increases.
Moreover, generally the door opening/closing apparatus of the rear opening is arranged in the roof of the vehicle. However, if the door opening/closing apparatus is arranged in the roof, the roof bulges. This reduces the space inside the vehicle. Moreover, the bulging becomes obstructs when putting in and taking out luggage. Further, when the door opening/closing apparatus is disposed in the roof, a bracket for mounting the door opening/closing apparatus is required, which increases the cost of the vehicle. In addition, when the door opening/closing apparatus is arranged in a roof of a vehicle having a so-called “three-row seats (a vehicle where two rows of seats are arranged along a longitudinal direction of the vehicle in a compartment behind a driver's seat)”, the head of a passenger or a vehicle occupant sitting on the third row seat is positioned close to a bulging portion of the roof, which obstructs getting in and out of the vehicle.